


Dr Lee Schnee, PH. D. (that can't be his real name)

by incredibly_cold



Series: The Hamfam goes to college [6]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: College AU, Concussions, Gen, I have no relationships tagged because it doesn't really focus on any?, Modern AU, a little blood, but its kind of john/alex, implied mutual crushes for alex and john, john being very cute and a little loopy, side mulligan/lafayette, some injury, talking about violence but not graphically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-25
Updated: 2016-08-16
Packaged: 2018-06-10 14:57:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6961711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/incredibly_cold/pseuds/incredibly_cold
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John was always getting into fights, and inevitably, he got hurt. Alex felt like a really shitty person by being so entertained by his concussed roommate, but he was actually really funny when he was really emotional and had no filter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

John was ashamed to admit that he had forgotten about his new roommate. He was a nice enough kid, even though he never stopped talking. A freshman, but not as annoying as some. They got along well, and they stayed up late having all kinds of discussions. That was part of the reason he was so ashamed about forgetting, because it wasn't like they just ignored each other all the time.

Walking into an otherwise unoccupied dorm with a bloody nose and lip wasn't all that bad. He could clean himself up in private without fear of judgement. Walking in and being seen on the other hand...

"What the hell happened to you?!" Alex's voice sounded more shrill and piercing than usual, possibly due to the fact that his head was pounding. Usually he liked his voice, but at the moment he would have greatly preferred Hercules' smooth low one.

He tried to smile and look like he was okay. "Nothing bad, just a normal day." He couldn't keep the smugness out of his face. That was a great coverup.

"You're bleeding everywhere, that's not normal." Alex seemed more cautious all of a sudden, which was kind of weird, but thinking about why just made John's head hurt.

"Okay but could you maybe like... Pretend I'm not bleeding? Then it'll be really normal." John giggled to himself a little bit. He really liked having Alex around. He was such a cool guy, and he was so nice. He had really pretty hair too, which should give him bonus points.

Alex kept staring at him with that same concerned look. "John, did you hit your head at all? You seem a little different."

"Pssh, yeah! This guy, he was totally breaking fight rules. Like I know there aren't rules, but he was breaking the rules. He held my hair and used it to slam my head into the ground. Really rude." As if on cue, he felt another stabbing pain in his head. "You're like the best guesser ever. Can you read minds?"

John didn't seem bothered when Alex got up and picked up his phone, or even when he started texting. He just kept talking

"I mean I KNOW you don't THINK you can, but have you ever tried? Because I think maybe you can and you've just been holding back because the world has taught you not to believe in yourself." Suddenly a look of extreme focus came onto his face. "Try to guess what I'm thinking of."

"Turtles."

"HOLY SHIT YOU'RE MAGIC." John exclaimed as he climbed into bed. Not his own bed, but Alex's. He was smiling as he laid down on top of his roommate, seemingly oblivious to the other man's muffled protests. "You're a cool guy, you know? Super cool. The cooliest. Way better than my old roommate, he was really grouchy. I feel like we're kind of best friends though." He rambled.

* * *

"Yeah, definitely." Alex gave up on trying to get him off pretty quickly. They were similar in size, but John was more muscular, and therefore heavier, and Alex wasn't strong at all. He'd texted Hercules and Marie to come over right away because John needed to see a doctor. They would be here soon enough, and they could lift him more easily. The moment of silence started to stretch out, and he jabbed the limp body on top of his with a finger. "Are you going to sleep?"

There was a pathetic whine and a sigh that he could feel on his neck, where John had buried his face. "I'm trying to. Friends who nap together zap together." It sounded like complete nonsense, but in Alex's current state of trying to determine just how bad this concussion was, he thought it did sound like there was logic behind it. Really muddled logic, but still something. It sounded like one of those things that a teacher would say, except probably he'd switched out words to work for him. That also meant that he made up a rhyme, even if it didn't make a whole lot of sense. He still had some verbal processing ability.

"Maybe we can nap together later, right now I want to be awake together." He squirmed a little bit to emphasize his point.

John sighed again, more heavily this time. "But I'm _tired_ , Alex."

"I know you are." He had to think of something for them to do that wouldn't hurt his head any worse, or there was no way he'd stay awake. "Hey John, you used to act in high school, right? You told me that?"

"Yeah, I'm the best actor." John snorted. It felt kind of horrible to think it was funny, but it was really funny. John with a concussion was very happy and sure of himself. It really called how much he wasn't either of those things normally to attention.

He was glad this was going in the direction that he'd wanted it to. "Why don't you recite a monologue for me? I really want to see you act."

John turned further into him, so their faces were resting nose against cheek. There was a giddiness in him. "You want to see me act?" Alex nodded and tried to ignore the slightly gooey feeling of mostly dried blood on the other man's face. The blood wasn't openly flowing, and it wasn't near his mouth or eyes, or any open wounds. It would be fine until he could wash it off. Besides, John probably didn't carry any blood borne disease. It would be okay, he told himself.

He took a moment to reposition himself (still laying on top of him, but now propped on his elbows so his face was visible) and get into character before he started. "I know you all, and will a while uphold The unyolked humor of your idleness." He began, solemnly. The piece that he had chosen came as a surprise, he'd have thought Shakespeare would be too much for him in his current state. There was a pause, either for dramatic effect or because he was searching for the next line. It was hard to tell for sure, but when he spoke again he had a wry smile. "Yet herein will I imitate the sun, Who doth permit the base contagious clouds To smother up his beauty from the world, That when he please again to be himself, Being wanted, he may be more wondered at By breaking through the foul and ugly mists Of vapours that did seem to strangle him."

Alex could honestly say that he was astounded by the ease with which John spoke. He stumbled a little, and though he was obviously trying to keep with his iambic pentameter, he wasn't succeeding. Still, he had all the words right, as far as Alex could tell.

There was another pause, this one obviously for thought. "If all the year were playing holidays, To sport would be as tedious as to work; But when they seldom come, they wished-for come, And nothing pleaseth but rare accidents." Up to this point, he had kept up his odd, concussed, peppy behavior. Now it fell away, and he talked more slowly. More thoughtfully. "So, when this loose behaviour I throw off And pay the debt I never promisèd, By how much better than my word I am, By so much shall I falsify men's hopes; And like bright metal on a sullen ground, My reformation, glitt'ring o'er my fault, Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes Than that which hath no foil to set it off."

At nearly the same moment that he was finishing that sentence, he heard Marie and Hercules at the door. He was fairly certain John hadn't locked it. If he had, this was going to get a little tricky, because clearly he was not in the mood to get off of him.

It was, thankfully, open, and they walked in just in time to hear the closing line of the soliloquy. "I'll so offend to make offence a skill, Redeeming time when men think least I will." John finished, completely oblivious to the newcomers.

"You're amazing, I think you deserve an Oscar." Alex told him immediately. He was much more emotional than usual right now, and it seemed very likely that he might cry if he didn't get a good compliment.

Lafayette walked into the room, his boyfriend in the doorway behind him, and stared at Alex suspiciously. After several second of waiting for them to somehow announce their presence, he was starting to get irritated. While they stood around, John was nuzzling his face into the crook of his neck, and despite the fact that he knew it wasn't really anything, he was starting to feel uncomfortable having their friends watch.

The Frenchman was the first to speak. "Are you trying to take advantage of John while he doesn't know what he's doing?" The accusation in his voice was clear, and Alex got the feeling that if the answer was yes he was going to get a punch in the face.

Luckily, John answered for him. Or not answered exactly, but did enough to show them what he was like at the moment. "Oh my god, you guys are here!" He looked up a little blearily, and saw them. The ensuing scramble to get up to either hug them or add them to the group nap ended with an elbow in the sternum and a knee in the crotch for Alex. He swallowed his sounds of pain so that John wouldn't feel bad. "I love you guys so much. You're the best friends ever, I can't believe you came to visit me. It really means a lot because you're both so great and you were thinking of me and you took time out of your day to see me, and-" he cut himself off with his own choked sob. He was crying now, and hugging both of them. As soon as he stood up he listed severely to the right, and almost went down. Hercules had to save him by catching him mid-fall.

"Look, I'm really worried about him and we need to hurry." Alex told them. "He can apparently recite Shakespeare, which is a good sign, but he's definitely not okay."

John gasped. "I am very okay. Some people would even say that I'm a delight to be around, thank you very much." He patted Herc's pecs for emphasis, since they were currently right next to his face. "Look at these guys. They're both like total babes probably and they drove all the way five minutes to be with me."

"Yeah, Marie can drive. I'll sit in the back with him and make sure he doesn't accidentally hurt himself any worse." Mulligan completely ignored his ramblings and scooped him up bridal style. He was plenty strong to carry him, and after seeing him try to walk across a tiny dorm, he obviously didn't trust him to make it to the car on his own.

"You're so _strong_." John went on dreamily. It seemed that he was enthralled with his own voice. He couldn't stop talking.

Lafayette sighed and went back to open the door for his boyfriend. " _Christ_ John, they really did a number on you this time." His comment was ignored by their slightly delirious friend. "Alex, thank you for texting us. As much as I love how friendly he's being, I'd hate to see him get any permanent brain damage."

"Hang on, did you say 'this time?' As in this has happened before?" Alex couldn't imagine someone as calm and reasonable as John getting into a lot of fights. There must be some pretty terrible people around campus if they would pick on a guy like him. He followed them out in a rush and almost forgot to lock the door behind them.

Marie snorted, as if this was very funny. "John has been in more fights than anyone I know, and he's lost all of them. It's rare to see him uninjured." He smiled fondly at the limp body in his boyfriends arms. Apparently he was very relaxed being carried like that. "He is either very brave or very stupid."

"Are those my only options?" John spoke up, proving that he was not asleep yet. "Because I feel like there should really be several more. I know exactly what I'm getting myself into, I just don't care. Not because I'm brave though, I just don't care." He stopped talking and giggled. "I think I might have a concussion."

"You don't say?" Hercules laughed, and didn't acknowledge the somewhat concerning words that John had spoken. He'd just admitted that he didn't care about his own physical wellbeing, after all. Shouldn't that be of some concern? Alex decided that maybe he should ignore it too. As much as he liked John, he didn't really know him at all. He could hardly judge what was and wasn't concerning.

The Hazel eyes that had been staring serenely up at the lights of the stairwell as they passed overhead, squinted at Hercules suspiciously. "How could you tell? I've been a normal acting person."

"The complete lack of any joking insults tipped us off." Marie supplied helpfully from a few steps behind his boyfriend. "By now you really should have called us losers for coming to your dorm in the middle of the night."

"Are you saying that normally I'm mean?" He sounded genuinely hurt, which was more cute than anything else.

"No, but you're very sarcastic and you tease your friends. We love that about you. The tearful embrace was nice too though." He added the last part as an afterthought, but it was probably a good idea. Saying he hadn't done something that they liked might just make him all emotional again.

John hummed quietly and let his eyes slide back to the ceiling. He didn't even trouble himself with lifting his head when they got to the door so that he could fit through more easily. Even without his help, they managed to maneuver him through without incident. "Wow, those are some stars." He spoke up, as soon as the sky was visible. The wonder in his voice didn't match his words, and Alex had to consciously stop himself from laughing.

"Can you name any, petite tortue?" Marie asked. It was hard to tell if he was actually expecting him to be able to or if it was just something to keep him awake and talking.

There was a slightly irritated noise, but John did answer. "Yeah, the sun. The rest of them probably haven't told us their names yet."

"Good, and do you know the president's name?" Hercules chimed in.

"Barack Obama, I'm not stupid. Where is you people's faith in me?" He whined. "Alex, you know I'm a genius, right?"

Alex tried to keep his laughter contained, and only half succeeded. "Of course I know that, but I love hearing you prove it to them. Keep going."

His answer was satisfactory enough that John answered every question that was asked of him on the drive to the medical clinic. Getting him to fill out the papers explaining why he was there was nearly impossible, however, so they filled it out for him and had him sign. Alex made a mental note to add 'trouble reading' to the list of issues he was having.

"I hate to be rude, but don't you think we should take him to the real hospital? I mean, this place is for minor medical emergencies." Alex waited until John wasn't paying attention to ask Hercules. "Head trauma isn't exactly minor."

His friend nodded in agreement. "Yeah, but emergency rooms have long lines. Here we know that he'll get seen soon. He hasn't had any seizures or anything, so really he probably isn't that bad. I doubt that he'll need to go anywhere else, but they'll be able to tell us for sure while we're here." Alex hadn't known any of them for very long, but he had learned that despite his tough appearance, Hercules Mulligan was the softie of the group. He was more delicate with people's feelings than anyone else was.

"Seizures? Is that something that happens with a concussion?" It was safe to assume that he would know, since he was a football player.

Hercules winced at that. He'd intended to set Alex's mind at ease, but bringing up seizures wasn't the best way to go. "Well yeah, sometimes, but not always. He might not."

"And if he does?" There was an edge of panic in his voice.

He tried to think of a good way to say it. "If it's a convulsive seizure, put something under his head so he doesn't hurt himself anymore. Take him to the hospital once he's okay to move again."

Before Alex had a chance to react, John was called. Hercules volunteered to go with him, since he was the calmer than Alex, and more likely to be able to explain what happened than Marie. Not that any of them really knew what happened, but he could definitely say whatever he needed to say in English. Lafayette could hold his own in conversation, but not so much when it came to explaining medical problems.

* * *

John was disappointed when his new roommate didn't come back to the doctor's office with him, but he didn't protest it. Hercules was cool too, and they'd been friends the longest. The taller man was also letting him walk on his own now, though not without an arm around him to provide support in case he fell again.

He wasn't really sure why the whole situation was funny to him. He was starting to suspect that it might have something to do with his newly obtained head wound, but even that didn't bother him much. It was kind of nice. Also kind of not nice, because whenever he tried to think of why it was a nice change, or to make a grammatically correct sentence, his brain seemed to short circuit and he got another stab of pain in his head.

When they arrived in the room, Hercules let him go so that he could sit on the examining table, which may not have been a good idea because there was a step up, which was kind of tricky. John sat down very carefully, trying not to rip the paper. He was very nearly successful, except that once he was settled he leaned back on his arms and his left hand punched through. Very slowly, he turned and gazed at the hole in the paper. It wasn't very big, and yet it was a reminder of all his failures in life. All of it summed up in this one tear in a piece of paper.

He couldn't quite judge how long he stared at it before he turned to Hercules, but he felt like it was probably a long time. Long enough that both his friend and the nurse were staring at them. "I ruined it." He managed, somehow feeling that this could summarize the emotional journey that had just taken place.

"That's okay, more rolls out." The nurse told him, with a fond smile. John liked her immediately. "So, it says here that you hit your head. How long ago was that?" She asked.

That stumped him. Time was a weird concept. How long ago did anything happen? It was today, he knew that much. He also knew that it was before he got home, and after classes. If it was during classes he could have told her easily, because apparently he was a genius now with pre-memorized information like lines or class times. He doubted that he could have recited his Shakespeare monologue before the injury. Beyond that though, he was having a lot of trouble quantifying anything. "It was sometime after 7." He supplied after a lot of deliberation. He knew that because he had checked the time at exactly 7 and remembered thinking 'look at that, it's exactly 7.'

The nurse looked over to Hercules, clearly hoping that he could tell her more. He shrugged. "His roommate texted me around 10:30 for help, that was when he got home. He walked though, not drove, so probably within an hour of that? I don't think we could narrow it down much more." Hercules was the man, he was so responsible about times and stuff.

She nodded apparently satisfied with that. "And what happened?"

This time, he didn't have to think much. "This guy, he was so rude, we were fighting and he just grabbed my hair and used it to slam my head into the ground His friends pulled him off because apparently they're reasonable people, but can you believe that? He doesn't even know street fighting courtesy. You just don't use people's hair to slam their head into the ground. It's bad manners." John was still very upset about the whole thing. Not because of the injury so much as the fact that it was unfair. His friends had taken hold of him very quickly, before his head had even made contact with the ground, actually. Not soon enough to completely stop the action, but enough to keep the impact from doing a lot of damage. Then they had all cleared out.

If she was shocked, she didn't show it. "Did you lose consciousness?"

"No, my head didn't hit very hard. I'm pretty okay I think." He assured her.

"And you haven't had any seizures or fainted since?"

"Nope."

She asked a few more questions, but he was too emotionally moved by how much she cared about him to be asking them to even be sure that he was answering. If he wasn't, then apparently Hercules could, because neither of them did anything to pull him from his reverie. Before he knew it, she was gone, and he was alone again with his oldest pal.

"You know Hercules, this place is really great. They just _care_ so much about whether or not I'm doing okay. I mean, I don't even know her, but she was so concerned, you know?" John asked, resting his face on the other man's chest. He was standing right there, and he didn't make him sit up, so he figured that probably he was down with it.

He did get a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Yeah, totally."

That was when the doctor came in. John sat back up excitedly. He no longer cared about the compassion of health care workers, he was eager to see a whole brand new person that he'd never met.

"My name is Dr. Schnee." The man said. He was very handsome and young, and John really liked that about him. In fact, he even thought he would show off how cool and personable he was by reading his name tag, so he could know his first name too. The large print was much easier than the stupid forms from before. It said 'Lee Schnee.'

Lee Schnee. Lee Schnee. John realized that he had completely missed a question while he was thinking about what an incredible name that was. He tried to refocus himself by focusing instead on Dr. Schnee's face, but again failed. He was too handsome

"What?"

"I asked what happened." He repeated, with the most pleasant, and even possibly amused smile. That made John feel good. He was being entertaining, charming this very handsome doctor with his good lucks and wonderful personality. It was great.

"Oh. I got into an argument two days ago with some guy about puppies being cute or something that I was clearly right about, and he wouldn't admit he was wrong, so I challenged him to fight me. Tonight was when it was supposed to happen, so I show up for this totally respectful fight, and this jerk just uses my hair to slam my head into the ground. Clearly he's a piece of shit. I'm very chivalrous though, just so you know." He attempted a wink, but he was pretty sure he didn't succeed.

Dr. Schnee laughed, actually _laughed_ , and agreed. "I'm sure you are. And it says that you didn't lose consciousness?"

"Nope."

He went through the entire list of questions, and then started asking new ones, like what his favorite color was, and other arbitrary facts. He even asked John if he knew who the president was, which apparently was supposed to be some kind of secret since everyone was curious about whether he knew. Then he started testing his reflexes and stuff, and John wasn't sure if he did well or not. Finally he seemed satisfied with his results.

"Well, you definitely have a concussion, but I think you're going to be fine. If you start having seizures or fainting, then go to the emergency room, but you probably won't."

"And I can totally go to sleep, right?" He'd heard that people with concussions weren't supposed to go to sleep, but that sounded really stupid because John wanted very badly to sleep right now. He was really tired.

The Dr. Lee Schnee's face did not give him much hope. "I would say yes, but since the injury happened very recently and could still start showing signs of being more serious later, I would advise keeping you up for a few more hours. Just two or three. You can take acetaminophen for the pin, but no ibuprofen."

That was exactly the kind of thing he didn't want to hear. "Are you sure I can't sleep? Like really really sure? Because I think sleep sounds like the perfect thing for me right now." John pointed out. He felt that it was a valid point, one that should be addressed.

"I'm sure. I also want you to take it easy for the next few days, okay? No TV or phones, nothing with a screen. No reading, or writing, or drawing. You can try listening to headphones, but if you feel it starting to make your head hurt more, then stop it. And that means no going to class or work either, if you do those normally." It was just getting worse and worse. If he wasn't supposed to sleep, and he couldn't do anything, then how was he supposed to keep himself awake? He saw this as a gaping hole in the man's logic.

"And we'll hold you to all of that, John." Hercules told him, effectively destroying the plan he'd already started to form about just doing all those things anyway.

After that, they went back out to the waiting room to join Alex and Marie. Somewhere along the way, Hercules had gotten a paper telling him exactly what he could not do, all in large bold print which was very nice because he could totally read it. Unfortunately, other people could also read it, which meant that there was no fun allowed for the next several days.

In the car, Hercules broke the one bit of bad news that was not on the sheet. "So Alex, he's supposed to stay awake for the next few hours. Do you want us to stay over to keep him entertained, or do you think you can handle it?" What a dick, he'd completely blown his cover.

"I can definitely sleep though!"

Hercules was having none of it. "No, you can't. We aren't going to let you."

"But _Hercules_ , friends who nap together zap together." He wasn't sure where he'd heard it, so he might have made it up, but it sounded very official. Official enough to have convinced Alex earlier, at least. And Alex was super smart, so that was saying something.

This time, it got him a laugh. "I'm pretty sure you're thinking of 'neurons that fire together wire together.'" He corrected. That did sound more correct, but he wasn't going to admit it.

"Exactly like that, but it's a totally different thing."

"No it isn't."

"Yeah, it's _science_." He put emphasis on the word, knowing that could be his trump card. He knew a lot about science, where Mulligan knew very little. Or he assumed he knew very little, since he didn't really take any science classes. "Which you wouldn't even know anything about, mister _graphic design_ major." It was a pretty sick burn, if he did say so himself.

It didn't seem to bother the other man in the slightest though. "John, the doctor said you weren't supposed to sleep for a few more hours."

"What does he know?" John asked. He was determined to get them to see his point and also to be able to sleep. "He was very young, and handsome, and he had a wonderful personality. That sounds exactly like not a real doctor, if you ask me. Plus, his name was Lee Schnee, that's so not a doctor name. It's more like a stripper name. Hercules, that doctor was a stripper and we shouldn't listen to him." He was vaguely aware that Alex and Marie were laughing up front, but he didn't care. That was an incredibly solid argument.

Hercules sighed, and it seemed that he had actually given up. He hadn't. "Well then John, since the other most commonly known belief is that we have to keep you awake for twenty four hours, I guess we'll ignore what he said and do that."

It was a mean trick, but John accepted defeat. "Fine, I'll stay up for a few more hours."

"And do you want help, Alex?" Hercules asked again.

The voice that answered was nearly breathless with laughter. "I think I can handle it. I could use some help getting him up the stairs though."

* * *

Alex said goodbye to the two friends who had been so kind and helpful that night. He was glad he had the both of them, since he sure as hell couldn't drive, and carrying him to the hospital was not an option. Hercules and Marie were everything that he could have ever wanted in a pair of friends. They were friendly, considerate, willing to help him with his troubles, and also ready to kick his ass if he tried anything with John right now. Well, that last one was just Marie. He had told him so in very clear terms before he'd left.

It wasn't difficult to see why. In his current state, John was a great deal more affectionate than usual. Not just in that he was nearly moved to tears by the presence of people who cared about him, or even in the fact that he had let down his guard a little more, and was suddenly talking to Alex like they'd known each other for years. No, John was also much more _physically_ affectionate. Any second spent not touching was apparently agony for him, because he refused to just sit in his own bed. Instead, he was with Alex in his bed, which was far from comfortable since it was a twin mattress.

Eventually, Alex gave up on writing essays on his laptop, and switched to reading from his textbooks. At his side, between him and the wall, laid John, cheek resting against his hip. Alex just tried to keep the book that was open on his lap from hitting the other man in the face, and to ignore the eyes that were fixed on his face.

In the beginning, he'd tried to talk, but John was not responsive. He would have to be prodded and asked again to get any answers, so Alex had taken to continuing with school work. He had a timer set, and if he saw John drifting off before it went off, he figured that bursting into an upbeat song would probably perk him back up. There was no such problem though, because John apparently was thoroughly enraptured with his face.

"You have such big eyes." John murmered, after what had to have bee almost an hour of complete silence.

It took Alex by surprise, but he didn't jump, at least. "Do I?" He asked, absently. He was quite sure he could keep up this level of conversation and still continue studying.

"Yeah, and a big head too. You look kind of like an alien." He replied, somewhat wistfully.

Despite his decision to keep reading, he found himself looking over at his roommate in utter confusion. Was John really calling him ugly? He was being so nice and complementary to everyone else, and then he called him an _alien_? He couldn't help being mildly offended. "You think I look like an alien?"

John nodded, with a dreamy smile on his face. "Yup." There were several seconds of silence in which he looked like he was probably trying to think. It was honestly hard to tell. "But like, a cute alien. The alien everyone wants to date." He finally came up with. Again, Alex found himself more amused than he felt he probably should be by his friend who had gotten a brain injury.

"Good save."

"No, I'm serious. You're really cute. Probably one of the cutest guys I know. I like your alien head." John seemed slightly perturbed about not being taken seriously. "And you have great hair. If they were giving out points based on hair, you would have a lot. Like ten probably." He went on. Alex noticed that he didn't include what scale that would be on, so it was hard to say how good that was.

He smiled. "Thanks John. You've got some pretty great hair yourself, so that means even more coming from you."

That seemed to please the other man, because he beamed and continued to stare up at him silently.

It didn't seem like it took very long before the alarm was beeping quietly, signalling that John could finally go to sleep. He reached over to the desk and turned it off, before looking down at his roommate expectantly, waiting for him to get into his own bed. "You know what that means?"

"Time to zap together?" He was grinning from ear to ear, delighted with either the idea of sleeping or having Alex actually participate in the currently one-sided cuddling.

"Or time to zap by yourself!" Alex said it with as much enthusiasm as possible in the hopes that he'd be able to sell him on the idea. If the crestfallen expression was anything to go by, he had failed miserably. "Unless you really want to stay over here." He tried to keep his own annoyance from showing. He'd really wanted to get some studying done, but it didn't look like that was going to happen.

John perked up immediately. "I do want that."

"Okay, then I guess we'll just brush our teeth and stuff and then you can sleep in my bed with me." He wasn't sure how they could manage it in a twin bed, both being adult sized people, but he was willing to try, he supposed.

It took a bit of nudging, but finally he got John into his pajamas and ready for bed. Only then did he actually kick off his shoes and jeans and put on pajama pants. Normally he slept in boxers, but he wasn't sure how John would be in the morning, and he might be a little more aware and uncomfortable about things like that. He kept John next to the wall, so that if one of them fell out of the bed, it wouldn't be the one who was already injured.

It didn't bother him really, sleeping in the same bed. Alex had never been particularly uncomfortable sharing small spaces, and he kind of enjoyed the feeling of another warm body pressed against him. He was mostly worried that John would suddenly come to his senses and be completely horrified at their closeness. It wasn't that he thought John was a homophobic dudebro who would think it was too gay, it was just that he seemed so completely terrified of physical contact with most people. The only two people he was okay with touching him in a remotely familiar way were Marie and Hercules, and they had built a friendship over time. Based on his normal behavior, this would be way too much for him. He didn't want to push any boundaries too far too early on.

Still, laying like this, with John's face buried against his chest, it was hard not to feel happy.


	2. Fly as Hell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Concussed people can't really go to school, and Alex can't really stay home. It's time to bring in a third party.

The next day provided a problem. John wasn't allowed to go to school, but Alex couldn't stay home. He felt bad waking him, but John was a Junior, while he was still a freshman. He was bound to know someone around here who could stay with him for the day. He'd already texted Mrs. Washington to see if he should have someone stay with him in case he suddenly got worse, and she said yes. She also said that she was out of town visiting old friends, which meant that she was not a viable option.

Luckily, John was still in a fantastic mood. He woke up smiling, which was funny because he'd never seen anyone do that before in his life.

"Hey, I know you're tired, but do you know anyone who could stay with you while I'm at school? It would be fun. like having a party instead of class." He wasn't sure that his roommate would actually need persuading in this situation, but he tried to talk up the option anyway.

John hummed happily and nuzzled his face into Alex's pillow. "I don't know, what day is it? Is it Thursday? It feels kind of like a Thursday. If it's Thursday then Eliza doesn't have classes."

"Eliza?" She sounded vaguely familiar. Someone John had mentioned before in passing.

"Yeah, I have her phone number and I can text her if you want," John suggested, clearly trying to get some time on his phone. It was kind of cute, him trying to be sneaky. Like a little kid.

Well, his antics wouldn't work on Alex. He'd been given very clear and simple instructions to not allow John to use any kind of electronic device. He wasn't going to break those rules and risk being responsible for any permanent brain damage that might happen as a result. "Or you could tell me your password and I could text her for you. I think we should go with that one."

"Wow Alex, you're no fun at all." He whined, but relented and handed over the phone. "It's 2539. Her name in my phone is just Eliza."

It took a bit of scrolling through contacts to find her, and then Alex had to decide if he wanted to call or text. On one hand, she was probably asleep at this hour if she didn't have classes, so a text might not be enough. On the other hand, calling people was weird, especially if you didn't know them. But this was also John's phone, so she wouldn't know that she didn't know him until she picked up, and she wouldn't be obligated to spend any time with him at all, just with John. He assumed the two of them were decent friends if John knew she didn't have classes. He decided that calling was the best course of action after all.

The phone rang twice before someone picked up on the other end, and a tired voice spoke. "John? Is everything okay?"

Of course she would assume that something was wrong, why else would someone call a person in this day and age? Especially in the morning when one of them was supposed to be sleeping in. "Actually this is John's roommate, Alex. Everything is fine, I was just was wondering if you could kind of babysit John for the day?"

There was a brief pause on the other end. "Babysit him? Why does he need babysat? He's an adult, and he has classes today." She still sounded groggy, but a little more interested.

"Oh, right! He got a concussion yesterday and someone is supposed to watch him in case he starts vomiting, passing out, or having seizures!" How had he forgotten the most important part of the story? "I mean he hasn't yet, so he probably won't, but just in case. He said you didn't have classes today, but if he messed that up and you do, I'd really appreciate it if you could tell me someone else who could look after him. I don't really know that many people here."

"Oh my god, that sounds really not fine! No, he's right, I'm free. I'd be happy to look after him! Should I come over now to pick him up?"

Thank god, this woman was a life saver. Alex really didn't want to miss class, but he also couldn't leave John alone in good conscience. "Yes please, that would be fantastic! Thank you so much!"

"No problem, I'll be right over!"

* * *

John couldn't shake the warm happy feeling he had, and he didn't want to. It was a nice change of pace to be so ridiculously happy for no reason at all. He watched Alex get dressed, smiling the whole time. Alex was so sweet. He'd called Eliza to make sure that he wouldn't be home alone, which was like the sweetest thing ever. Plus, he was letting John stay in his bed, which was pretty great.

The knock on the door was enough to remind him of what had happened last night. He felt his whole head throb at the sound that seemed very loud compared to the relative quiet of before. His roommate opened the door quickly though so that she didn't have to knock a second time, and let her into their dorm.

"God Eliza, you're so pretty." John sighed from under the covers. She was wearing this big blue sweater that looked really soft, and black leggings. Her hair was in a messy bun, and it showed off her perfect round face. "Do you just wake up beautiful, or do you have to try to look nice? Like you just always look pretty no matter what, it's so great."

Eliza smiled and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Aw, thanks John. You look pretty good yourself for a guy with a black eye!"

"I have a black eye?"

Alex chose that moment to step in, which unfortunately left John to wonder if he really actually had a black eye. "Okay, so he's not really allowed to do anything. No electronics, drawing, reading, writing, nothing. He can sit there and talk or look around or he can sleep, which he'll probably do a lot. We have Tylenol that you can take with you, but don't give him Advil because apparently then he might bleed to death or something? Honestly he's pretty low maintenance, you can probably do just about anything as long as it doesn't involve watching movies or TV or him exerting himself."

So rude. Eliza totally didn't need to know any of that, now she was going to enforce all the dumb rules. "Wow such a buzzkill Alex, how are we supposed to have fun now?"

"We'll have plenty of fun!" She assured him, although John had a hard time believing her because he couldn't think of anything fun to do that didn't involve at least one of those things. Then again, he was having a very hard time thinking of anything at all, so that might not have meant a lot. "So I'm pretty much just making sure he's not getting worse, and keeping him out of trouble. Right?"

"Yeah! I have to leave like right now, but if you give me your phone I can put my number in so you can let me know if anything happens?" He was so cute, all rushing to get out the door. Such a nerd, he couldn't even be late to class one time. John couldn't stop himself from smiling.

Eliza beamed and handed over her phone. "I'll be sure to keep you updated on how he's doing."

"Thank you again! You're the best, seriously! Anytime I can help you out, just ask!" Alex handed back her phone and picked up his books, then hurried out the door to run to class.

"Wow, he's pretty great," Eliza stared after him dreamily. "He really cares about you, it's so sweet. And those eyes!"

John groaned. "Oh my god, he has the best eyes! I would probably date his eyes if that was a thing. Eliza you should hang out with him more, he's like the best person ever."

"I just might take you up on that. Anyway, how are you feeling? You seem like you're in a pretty good mood!" She turned back to him, all smiles again.

How could she tell? Maybe he was like oozing good mood or something, that was probably a thing. "Damn right I'm in a good mood! This is the shit man, like the best day ever! I am so happy right now!"

Eliza laughed, and instead of feeling defensive like he probably would normally, he was very proud. He wasn't sure what he said that was funny, but he did know that he was a comedic genius apparently. "Well that's good to hear! If you want to get dressed, we can head over to my apartment and you can sleep there. Well, I guess you don't have to get dressed, you can have a pajama day if you want."

Who wouldn't want a pajama day? "Then I am wearing this," he told her, and got up out of bed. "And a jacket." It was winter and also he loved jackets, so he kind of had to wear one.

"A jacket is a very good idea, it's a little chilly out there," she told him. Eliza was from around here, so 'a little chilly' to her was just plain cold for John. Even after two, going on three full winters here, he still hadn't adjusted from the year-round warmth of South Carolina. She waited for him to pick one of them (he had more jackets than he had any other item of clothing) before she started for the door. "Let's go!"

* * *

John figured out something, once they were outside the building: it was really fucking bright out. It was early, and the sun was barely even up, but it was terribly, painfully, bright. He also found out that Eliza did not think it was too bright at all, even though the current angle of the sun meant that it was shining right into their faces. He was the only one who felt like he'd just been hit in each eye with a hammer.

After a few steps he just gave up on seeing. He closed his eyes and trusted Eliza to lead the way. She got him to the car without incident, and she even opened the door for him like a proper gentleman would for his southern belle. He pointed this fact out to her, which made her laugh.

"Do you wanna borrow my sunglasses? They're girly, but they'll do the job," she offered, once he had on his seat belt. The sunglasses in question, which she was holding out to him, were indeed very girly. They were pointed at the corners like old lady ones, but they had little clusters of plastic flowers that lessened that effect. John loved them.

He snatched them out of her hand and put them on his face, maybe a little too eagerly with his black eye. "You bet your ass I do, these are the cooliest glasses I've seen in my whole entire life that I can remember!"

"You like them?"

"Damn right I like them!" He flipped down the sun visor and checked his reflection in the mirror. They looked fucking fantastic. He turned to face her very slowly, and found that she was looking at him with a bemused expression. He spoke in his most serious voice. "Eliza, I look fly as hell in these shades."

John had managed another completely hilarious statement without even trying. Eliza was laughing so hard she was snorting, which was something she usually tried not to do. "You sure do!"

He considered a future in comedy instead of law. Sure, his dad wouldn't like the change, but clearly he had potential since everyone loved him and his jokes. Not even his jokes though, even his completely true statements were funny. It was great. In fact he was so absorbed in these thoughts of prospective careers, that he hardly even noticed the ten minutes it took to get to Eliza's apartment had passed. He knew they were moving, and he knew where they were going, but it took Eliza opening his door to make him realize that they had arrived.

"That was super fast, you must drive like..." he trailed off, uncertain of what she drove like. What drove fast? He couldn't really think of any broad group that stereotypically sped. "Like a really fast driver. Illegal fast."

"I think you might have spaced out hun, I would never drive at anything more than a safe and reasonable speed with you in the car." She assured him as she helped him out of the car.

Eliza's apartment was a bit of a walk from her parking spot, and without her guidance, he never would have found it. Luckily, she lived on the ground floor, so once they got there, John didn't have to worry about any climbing-level coordination. He just had to go inside and flop down on the couch as soon as he was there.

"Are you tired?"

"So tired. I could probably sleep for like several hours." He complained while she got out a fluffy blue blanket and tucked him into it. "I'm just going to take a nap here for a while, okay?"

She smiled at him, "Okay, sounds like a good plan. I'll put the sunglasses on the table for you."

The sunglasses? He'd forgotten that he was wearing them at all, but he let her take them off his face. Without them though, the sunlight pouring in through the window was too much. "Why is your apartment so bright? This is terrible," he whined. "Can I just leave the glasses on?"

"No sweetie, just turn over so you aren't facing the window. I don't want you to hut your eye because you rolled over in glasses." It took her pointing it out for him to remember that he apparently had a black eye. He hadn't checked it in the mirror because he had the sunglasses on. He didn't have a mirror now, so he did the next best thing and poked himself in both eyes. Sure enough, the right one hurt. Actually the entire right side of his face hurt, which was probably reasonable since it had kind of slammed into the pavement.

He rolled over obediently and found that this was indeed much better. "Wow, you're right."

It was hard for John to judge how long he was asleep, mostly because he didn't care at all and figuring it out would require thought that he couldn't be bothered to spend on something so arbitrary. When he woke up, Eliza was in the kitchen, talking quietly with two other women. He peered groggily over the arm of the couch and saw that the other two people were her sisters.

He didn't really feel like getting up, so he just laid on his stomach and watched them. It was unfair how pretty all of them were. They'd won the genetic lottery, that was for sure. Angelica was looking her usual mix of glamorous and ready to kill. Dark red shirt and lipstick to match, a leather jacket, sharp black eyeliner. He didn't really know Peggy at all, just that she was the third and youngest sister, but she had a much brighter, innocent look. She was wearing multiple necklaces, big dangly earrings, and flower clips in her hair. Without even talking to her, John decided that he liked her.

Very smoothly and silently, John took the sunglasses from the coffee table and put them on. It was still way too bright for him to deal with right now. Then he got up, being very careful not to fall over because of his bad balance.

"Look who's awake!"

It took him at least thirty seconds to realize that Angelica was talking about him. "Yes, I am very awake."

"How are you feeling?" Eliza asked him. She was so great, always concerned about how people were doing.

"My head hurts. Do you guys have food?" The subjects weren't really connected, but both of them were very present in his mind. He wanted food and also for his head to stop hurting.

"Here, I made waffles for everyone, and once you've eaten you can take some Tylenol." She got up from the table and made him a plate. John had a feeling that this was going to be a fun day. He liked all three of them, and he was excited to spend time with them.

* * *

Apparently he was here on just the right day, because the Schuylers were getting rid of clothes. Probably that wouldn't be terribly interesting on any other day, but at the moment it was very entertaining. They had really nice clothes, and he liked looking at them. Like there was this really soft purple button up sweater that belonged to Angelica. Naturally, he put it on. That was when the three of them decided to see what other clothes they could get him to put on.

It ended up being a very fun day. John tried on all kinds of women's clothing, which normally he never would have done, but in his state seemed like a lot of fun. He also slept a lot. Probably for most of the day really, which luckily was okay with his hosts.

When Alex arrived to pick him up (Hercules had driven him) he was shocked to find his roommate wearing blue tights, a fluffy pink skirt, a lacy blue tank top, and a purple sweater. If that wasn't unusual enough already, he also had a flowery clip holding his hair back, and a full face of makeup, which included hot pink lipstick. It took some effort to keep from looking too surprised and hurting John's feelings.

"Alex, Hercules! Oh my god it's so nice to see you!" he waved from the couch, as if he hadn't known that either of them would be over to take him home.

While it definitely wasn't a good thing that John had gotten a head injury, he was a lot more fun and friendly this way. Alex found himself smiling back, not because it was what you were supposed to do when someone smiled at you, but because he was genuinely excited to spent time with him. Not that he hadn't liked him before, but he was always kind of sad and closed off. This was better.

"Well it looks like you've had a busy day! I guess they thought you needed a makeover, huh?"

John squinted at him. "Peggy and Eliza said I'm cute, so I think need is kind of a little rude there, buddy." He slid a pair of flowery sunglasses on and gave Alex a very serious look. "But yes, they gave me a makeover, and now I look fly as hell."

Holy shit. It was impossible to stop himself from laughing at that, even though he did try. Concussed John was absolutely the best. Luckily, Hercules laughed too, so he wasn't alone. And John wasn't offended, if anything, he seemed very proud of himself for being funny enough to make them laugh.

"Okay but actually being this pretty is exhausting and I want to take a nap, so let's roll, bitches."

Alex thanked Eliza profusely for helping out with him. She said that she was happy to do it anytime, and then that she really hoped there wasn't another time. After that, the car ride was mostly quiet. John was indeed very tired, to the point where he spaced out the whole time, and they had to tell him that they were back home. As soon as they arrived, he collapsed onto the bed, leaving Alex to remove the sunglasses, hair clip, and shoes for him. Honestly, the first two needed to be returned, and if he rolled over and broke one, it would be terrible.

As he set down both plastic accessories, John's hand reached out and grabbed his. "Sit with me like yesterday, you're toasty and warm and you smell good," he mumbled.

Alex smiled. Yes, concussed John was definitely the best.

**Author's Note:**

> Another one by me and not my friend, but thankfully no suffering. You can follow/talk to me at incredibly-cold.tumblr.com. Comments are my favorite thing ever, so give me some. Also I would like to say that I wrote this because I got a concussion (playing a really convincing dead person) and so I started thinking about John getting one, but the point of this is that my doctor's name was really actually Lee Schnee and it was very distracting.


End file.
